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"Hey, that's a Kilrathi on the screen!"
Highball is still plugging away at a playthrough of the Wing Commander series, and he's made great progress. The commentary on mission structure, interesting twists and high/low points makes good reading, but it's also a lot of fun to see scores of pictures gracing the page for each new game. Wing Commander, The Secret Missions, Crusade and Wing Commander 2 have all been covered so far. The mission continues next in The Special Operations. Visit the "Chronicles of Wing Commander here.
Missions: VotK re-established the famous “mission tree,” with a slight change: there was not an extensive “losing track.” Each new system to which the Concordia jumped offered a series of winning track and losing track missions. When players failed a mission or series of missions in any particular star system, they would then play through that system's one series of losing track missions that offered the chance to get back on the winning track. Of course, should the player fail at both a regular series of missions and its subsequent chance at redemption, the player would then see a “losing” ending, which is being reassigned back to Caernaveron station, losing the entire main campaign, and Angel.
Though this does not give the player as much of an opportunity to claw their way back to victory after a series of losses due to some bad luck, it’s definitely better than the “all or nothing” approach of Secret Missions and Crusade. Of course, most players never see the losing ending, because VotK gives you the option to immediately replay a mission after a loss, or to "continue script." Which do you think the majority of players are going to choose? I had never seen the above losing screens, in point of fact, until I lost intentionally just to get the screen grabs.
Story: VotK expanded the Wing Commander universe substantially, as well as adding elements of uncertainty, doubt, and fear into the game by using the human traitor subplot; the reveal for which is done very well, keeping you guessing as to who the traitor may be the entire time. Of course, the scripted deaths added just the right element of suspense and impending doom. Developing a relationship with Angel over the course of the game only added to the fear that "anyone can die."
[ChrisReid] [# 10241] [Show comments]  
Ultima Online Receives Technical Upgrade
Ultima Online was down briefly this week for maintenance, and the systems updates that were conducted are a big deal. A major upgrade to the underlying databases that run the game has been in the works for years and was finally conducted this week. The investment represents a nice commitment to future of the game!
Why is this significant for us the team at Bioware Mythic? Because while we have worked on it in the background for months, and planned for it for a couple of years, UO has needed it for much longer than we'd like to admit.
While we do understand that game bugs, skills and object balance, and live content are important to the longevity of Ultima Online ... the foundation on which all this is supported was at a critical level. We want you to know we are in this for the long haul!
We thank you for your patience, and I'm certain you understand the significance of this update as we continue to improve the service of UO.
[ChrisReid] [# 10242] [Show comments]
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